Tag: Supersonica Festival

Sometimes it is more than the car, its the perfect mix of ambition and heart.

Last night started out like any other manufacturer party. This time hosted by Dodge. It was different as instead of rolling out a red carpet for a shiny new car, it was to give a gift to suburban Los Angeles based “A Walk on Water“. AWOW for short.

Until last night I hadn’t heard of them or their mission. AWOW is there to support families with autistic members. They provide the entire family, not just the person with autism, with the chance to spend a fun day together learning to surf. They believe in the theraputic powers of the ocean and surfing as a way to bridge the communication gap and give a family with special needs a fun learning experience they can share.

Actor Danny Trejo gave a moving introduction to the group and shared how is own family is affected by autism. Its just not the person with special needs that needs help, but the entire family that is affected and need help with coping and learning. The board members of AWOW also shared with us their personal stories on why what they do is important to them and the families they help. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house after one board member talked about how his non-verbal son spoke his first words after his first surf ride. He’s skilled now on the board that he’s ready to be a teacher in the group. The power in belief in abilities and that you can make always find a way to make a positive out of a challenge.

The big news dropped at the end of the presentations is that Dodge, a division of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles was donating $20,000 to AWOW to kick start their growth and expand beyond the Los Angeles area. Dodge/FCA together are also pledging an additional $50 for every test drive at authorized dealerships in the coming days up to $5,000 additional for AWOW. (list of authorized dealers after the jump). It was hinted that Danny Trejo himself will be at some of the dealerships during their day of sponsored test drives to meet and greet those helping out AWOW by taking drive in a shiny new Dodge.

To further sweeten the pot, Nacional Records, our host for the evening festivities, is going to give away 2 tickets per test drive to the October 3 Supersonico Festival at the Palladium.